MOBILE, Ala. – The University of South Alabama men's tennis team will be participating in the ITA All-American Championships and the Southern Miss Invitational this weekend.

Seniors Tuki Jacobs (Windhoek, Namibia) and Juan Cruz Soria (San Juan, Argentina) will represent USA at the ITA All-American Championships Oct. 1-10 in Tulsa, Okla. 

Jacobs went 13-7 for the Jags last spring, earning a spot in the qualifying draw, while Cruz Soria went 14-6 in the spring for Texas-Rio Grande Valley and will play in the pre-qualifying draw. 

"For the two guys going to the All-American tournament, it's a huge opportunity," said USA head coach Nick Brochu. "There will be no easy matches, and the guys really need to seize the opportunity."

The Jaguars will send four players to Hattiesburg, Miss. for the Southern Miss Invitational Sept. 30-Oct. 1. South Alabama will be one of four teams competing in the two-day event starting Friday morning.

The Jaguars will be sending senior Pierre Noyon (Oye-Plage, France), junior Oliver Gingras (Quebec City, Quebec, Canada), sophomore Lucas Gonzalez (Chateauroux, France), and freshman Clement Marzol (Toulouse, France).

"For the guys going to Southern Miss, it's going to be a lot of matches, and it's going to be a second test for Clement to see if he's improved," Brochu said. 

Noyon, Gingras, and Gonzalez each made it to the finals of their draw in the Thomasville Invitational Sept. 10-11. 

"We did well at Thomasville," said Brochu. "We were able to identify what we needed to work on, and that's what we have been doing for the past couple weeks. Sometimes at Thomasville, we were trying too hard, making it a little harder on ourselves."

On Friday, USA will face off against Alabama-Birmingham and Southern Miss in singles, and they will play New Orleans in doubles. The Jags will cap off the weekend by squaring off against UNO in singles, and UAB and USM in doubles on Saturday. 

"We have to learn how to take care of business when we're playing someone who is either the same or lower level," Brochu said. "It doesn't have to be perfect, but we should come out with more wins than losses."

For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at www.twitter.com/USAJaguarSports. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).

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